A look at SAT scores for Coatesville, Great Valley districts (Special Report, Part 2 of 2)

While more students are taking the SAT to prepare for their freshman year of college, scores show some fluctuations in how they’re performing.

The College Board, which administers the SAT tests, calculated the average score for the class of 2012 nationwide to be 496 for verbal, 514 for math, and 488 for writing.

For the Coatesville Area School District, the overall number of students taking the test has increased from 315 in 2001 to 336 in 2012. For the district there was also a decrease from 336 students in 2009 to 296 students in 2010. The attendance climbed back up to 319 the next year.

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Sonia Dipierro, the district’s SAT coordinator since 2006, attributed the sudden change in the number of students taking the SAT test to the national economic environment.

“When the economy kind of really plummeted we did have a number of kids that took a step back because their families didn’t know if they would be able to afford college,” said Dipierro.

According to Dipierro, some students are applying to two-year and community colleges, and then transferring to four-year institutions. Dipierro said that regardless of the individual student’s path in higher education, they encourage them to take the test for when colleges and universities request them.

The students’ average scores at Coatesville’s Senior High School for the verbal, math, and writing test portions have remained relatively stable. In 2001, the average scores were 467 for verbal and 460 for math. In 2006, the year the new SAT test format for students was introduced, students’ scores were 464 for verbal, 465 for math, and 446 for writing. In 2007, scores changed to 470, 464, and 457, respectively. In 2012, students’ scores were 447 for verbal, 448 for math, and 423 for writing.

“Statistically speaking, we’ve remained consistent with the national and state average,” said Dipierro. “You’re just going to see some years where we’re up a little bit higher, and some year a little lower.”

According to Dipierro, the test is an overall “good experience” for students hoping to at least keep their options open towards higher learning, and is a gauge for how they might perform in their freshman year of college.

In the Great Valley School District, at the Great Valley High School, the overall number of students taking the test has increased from 224 in 2001 to 274 in 2012.

The students’ average scores for the verbal, math, and writing test portions have also increased in the years since 2001. In that year, the average scores were 552 for verbal and 547 for math. The following year, those scores slightly changed to 548 and 548, respectively. In 2006, when a new test format for students was first introduced, students’ scores were 538 for verbal, 536 for math, and 527 for writing. In 2007, scores increased to 546 for verbal, 548 for math, and 542 for writing. In 2012, students’ scores were 572 for verbal, 576 for math, and 564 for writing.

“One of the things that the board, as well as the parents, wanted to see was (increase) our scores,” said Great Valley School District’s Superintendent Alan Lonoconus. “There’s been a lot of work done on the math curriculum, especially at the middle school level into high school level.”

According to Lonoconus, some of that work includes pre-algebra and algebra being introduced to grades earlier than in previous years, so as to prepare students for higher level math courses later in their high school and collegiate careers.

Lonoconus also said that these factors are only part of the bigger picture that have helped the district and its students show an overall increase in average scores.

“I believe the students are working a little bit harder at those extra things to try to better their chances at college acceptances,” said Lonoconus. “We’re also finding that colleges are looking at other things besides SAT scores. They’re looking at class rank, they’re looking at challenging courses that students are taking and the curriculum that they’re following, as well as class activities. They’re really looking for well-rounded students.”

According to the College Board, the SAT is “designed to assess (a student’s) academic readiness for college.” The exam can also aid students in finding opportunities to financial aid and scholarships.

The SAT is currently the most widely used college admission test.

This is Part 2 of a look at SAT test scores between school districts in Chester County.